September?? What?? It's almost gone??

Where in the world has September gone? It literally seems like it was one week...here, then gone! Maybe it seems that way because it was packed full, ha ha.  Here's what we've been up to this month...

Spent Labor Day weekend at the Fincher Family Reunion...always a great time seeing my family!

Enjoyed the last days of summer and the last swim of the season!

Boiler up! An impromptu fountain run for the boys!

Fall means farming and my boys love it!

Time with friends is always fun.

Ben was SO excited to have his friends get off the bus one night at his house!

Found some free time to paint my front and back doors...love this blue!

And, of course, more farming!!!

Old Threshers

We made a quick trip to Mount Pleasant, Iowa this weekend to help Pat and Sue take their camper out and get it set up for the week.  They go out to Mount Pleasant each year for the Midwest Old Threshers Reunion, which runs over the Labor Day weekend.  We have a family reunion over Labor Day, so we decided to make the trip this weekend so the boys could have some fun with Grannie and Papaw this weekend and Grandma Debbie and Grandpa Jim next weekend!

Even though the Old Threshers hadn't officially started, the boys were still able to ride the trolleys, see antique tractors, play in the sandbox, and camp out in the camper...lots of good memories in two short days!

Summer Fun at the State Fair!

No summer is ever complete without a trip to the great state fair!  This year, we went down for two days, and camped with our friends.  It was an absolute blast.  The kids enjoyed the sheep show, hanging out with their friends, and playing back at the campers.  The adults enjoyed the sheep show, too.  We also enjoyed wonderful food, fantastic conversation and a really late night with a great group of friends!  It was a nice way to end the first week back to school!

 Blake practicing his "shootin" skills!

 These goofballs kept us in stitches all weekend

 We met up with Grandma Debbie and Grandpa Jim in the Farm Bureau building...that was a nice surprise for the kiddos.

 These two were two peas in a pod all weekend

Three amigos!

Two amigos and their sidekick, Kyran!

 Ty had a great weekend showing his ewes.  He worked hard this summer and it paid off!

 These two cuties showing me their smiles and their "too cool" faces!

 Three little monkeys, climbing on the gates...

St. Ann's Fish Fry

Every year we look forward to the annual St. Ann's fish fry.  It's always a great night seeing familiar faces, helping the church, and eating wonderful food.  This year, the boys and I headed up to help because Andy wanted to stay home and finish up a few things before we headed out to the state fair the next day.  It was a great night with perfect weather and a record breaking crowd...the church served 1000 people that night...woohoo!

Kyran kept busy putting the ketchup away for Grandma Debbie

 Ben worked on his sorting skills by sorting the sugar, creamer, and salt packets.  Who knew learning could be so fun!

What do two boys do while you're cleaning up the church???  Find a big box and play hide and seek, of course!

Back to school we go!

We are officially back into the grind of school and work...ugh!  Ben is in Kindergarten and is loving it, and I started my 10th year at North (my 14th year overall).  It's nice to be back into a normal routine, but we're all definitely missing our late nights and sleeping in!  This summer was absolutely great...Disney, Michigan, county fairs, state fair, cook-outs, swim parties, birthdays and a million other fun moments in between, and even though it's tough to get back into the routine, we're already enjoying the cooler evenings and looking forward to a fantastic fall with family and friends!

 Our big boy, all ready for his first day of Kindergarten!  Where have the last 6 years gone???

Happy Birthday, Take 2

We celebrated Ben's birthday in Michigan, with my family, but we wanted to make sure and celebrate with Andy's family, too.  So, on Ben's actual big day, we had Andy's parents over and his sister and her family, and had a great little party with Ben and Kyran.  Ben, of course, was thrilled to be having another party with presents and cake, but it was also a nice time to visit and play with his cousins!

The "Lego" cake I attempted.  I am by no means a baker, so this was about as good as it comes when I "decorate" a cake!

They're gone!!!

The training wheels are officially gone from Ben's bike!  Ben got a new bike for his birthday, this year, and after just a few minutes of practice, the training wheels were banished forever!  I worked with Ben in the early afternoon for about 15 minutes (until Mommy lost her patience and Ben lost his motivation), and then Daddy came home and worked with him another 15 minutes or so, and then he was off!  He was so proud of himself (and so were we), and he's been riding his bike every single day since!  Every visitor we've had recently has gotten a quick demonstration of his bike riding skills, and our vehicles have had a permanent place in our driveway so he can ride circles in the garage.  It's so fun to watch him grow up and learn new skills, and the pride he has in himself is priceless!  Way to go, Ben!